


Better Feel Comfortable Daddy-o

by InterPlanetaryGirl



Series: Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great. [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Adoption, Family, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Mention of Not Steve Rogers friendly, Pepper IS willing to do what it takes, Pepper is also trying to encourage healthy eating habits, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Protective Pepper Potts, Protective Peter Parker, Science Bros, or healthy food choices if not habits
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 15:39:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12485016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InterPlanetaryGirl/pseuds/InterPlanetaryGirl
Summary: “You’re adopting him. He’s started calling you dad and he loves you as a father and I know you think of him as your son and you have a very nice and special bond, which is all well and good, but I get visitation.”“Okay, first off, kudos to you for figuring it out before I even brought it up with either of you. Secondly, it’s up to him where he stays but we’ll probably just stay with the same type of schedule we have now. Thirdly, I wouldn’t ever consider making you give up on seeing Peter. Finally, thank you for approving. I was going to ask after this weekend but it apparently seems I have a few calls to make.”***Peter calling Tony dad to multiple people, and they finally make it official





	Better Feel Comfortable Daddy-o

“So, we gonna talk about you almost calling me dad back there? And in front of your entire class too,” he gently mocked, watching Peter turn red. He’s just taken Peter away from a school trip he really had no reason to be on, he feels free to mock him gently now after saving him.

“No,” Peter answers.

“I think we should at least consider talking about it. Especially since it was the first thing to come out before even Mr Stark.”

“Well, I don’t want to discuss it.”

“Okay even I know that isn’t healthy.”

“All of us need some unhealthy behaviours. It’s what lets us know which are the healthy ones.”

“That is officially _the worst_ therapist’s advice I have ever heard, please, never go into psychiatry. Aside from that, I really don’t mind you know?” It’s a rhetorical question and they both know it, but...still.

Peter snorts. “I never want to go into psychiatry. I never want to touch anything to do with psychiatry with a ten foot pole.” There’s a pause, long enough in which Tony gives him _a look_. “And I...figured you wouldn’t mind, exactly, it’s just, difficult? I guess, to bring up. How was I even supposed to bring up something like that? Deliberately, I mean,” Peter tacks on.

“Well I have no idea, so let’s thank your lack of brain-to-mouth filter then, yes?”

“Had to inherit something other than reckless stupidity, superheroing, and extreme intelligence,” Peter points out sarcastically.

“Yeah, be thankful you didn’t inherit any of my bad traits,” Tony snorted arrogantly.

“Because reckless stupidity isn’t bad or anything,” Peter points out. “Not to mention some people see superheroing as a very bad thing.”

“Well those people own twelve percent of the shares in my company and should keep busy with running said company.”

“Slightly rude, don’t you think?”

“Whatever, point is, you almost called me dad in front of your entire class and I’m giving you permission to do it consistently.”

“Alright thanks.” Tony looks at him again and he sighs, “Dad.”

“That’s my boy!” Tony slaps him on the back playfully and Peter sends him a withering glare and a smirk at the fact it didn’t move him at all.  

* * *

Bruce came and went as he went, for the most part, working with Tony more often than not and not leaving for more than a couple of days at a time and always calling if he was going to be late.

After the whole Ragnarok business and leaving the planet with no warning, Tony liked to keep a closer eye on him. Granted he muttered over Wanda being the entire cause of that - which Peter could hardly deny since it was her actions which caused him to run in the first place, which led to the chain reaction of events- _but not the point right now_.

No, the point was that Bruce worked with Tony - his dad - a lot, but he was still getting into the habit of calling him that.

Of calling him Dad.

It was incredibly strange at first, and a couple of times he still made the same mistake which led up to him calling Tony dad in the first place: “Da- Mr Star- Tony,” except now he added a final “Dad,” on the end.

Tony snorted every time and just shook his head.

But it’s hardly been a week since he started and it was getting easier each time to not correct himself when he immediately went to.

So, when he got the highest A in the physics class test he had this week, that he wouldn’t have aced if _his dad_ hadn’t helped him, he can hardly be blamed for bursting into the lab holding it high and yelling out, “Dad I got _the highest_ grade in the class!”

Tony smiled brightly as Peter walked around the room. “That’s great, Pete, I told you you’d do it.” He sounded like a proud _dad_ and he _was_ but it was just so weird to think that he had _a dad_ to be proud of him. Different from an Aunt May to be proud of him in a way he doesn’t understand. Peter goes over to the ‘bots and and talks to them a little.

He gets a series of beeps and whirrs in return for his questions and answers.

Dum-E presents him with a smoothie, it’s dark purple and when he smells it it doesn’t smell...horrible?

Then he tastes it, “Really Dummy? Prunes?! And you _did_ put motor oil in this!” Peter says in mock outrage and turns away with a pout, intending to walk away before Dum-E is attempting to nuzzle into his side.

Despite the slight pain it brought him, Peter allowed it for several moments before he released himself.

“Alright, apology accepted, but you have to let me go.” He rubs over the top of his claw, like one might a dog, then walked over to his dad and Bruce.

“You’re comfortable,” Bruce pointed out with slight humour. “Much more than when I last saw you in here.”

“Well, it’s been a long week and a half,” Peter grins.

“And here I thought Tony would never be a father.” Said man scoffs.

“I hardly have to put any effort in, just wind him up to go. His aunt already did all the hard work and I get the almost-finished project of a tiny genius exactly like me but without the arrogance and ego problems.”

“Totally understandable,” Bruce nods sagely. “It’s not as if you don’t do anything for him now,” he says sarcastically.

“I never said that now,” Tony scoffs again. “Please, give me some credit, I keep him fed and I helped him ace that test, and other stuff - tell ‘im Petey,” Tony motions to him.

“Uh-huh, Pepper keeps all these healthy places to order from on and he lets me pick something so I don’t die of starvation, and Pepper keeps the fridges stocked with fresh fruit and veg snacks like hummus and carrot sticks, and last week he helped me to understand Biot-Savart Law.”

“It’s not that you didn’t understand it, kid, you knew perfectly well what it was used for, it was just a case of making sure you had it memorised,” Tony pointed out.

“Still, you helped.”

“By having Friday drill you at random times.”

“Still worked, and you helped explain the different parts separately so they all made sense,” Peter grinned with a shrug.

“I don’t know why I never saw it before,” Bruce shakes his head.

“He basically called me dad in front of his entire class when he was on a tour of the building,” Tony smirked.

Bruce chuckled. “Wait, why were you on a tour of the building.”

“Physics class trip,” Peter shrugged. “It was that or be left at school for like two hours in the afternoon without being able to skip out without some kind of suspicion arising. May as well come and then I’ll already be here.”

“Ali was showing them all around.”

“And where were you during this?”

“Getting on Pep’s nerves while I was supposed to be in a meeting she was holding with several heads of departments. I came and interrupted after she let me go, Petey here was just on the glass screens working on his own project. Friday informed me as soon as I was out of the room that he was logged into one _not in the lab_. He wasn’t even paying attention to the super interesting lecture they were giving on….something.”

“Biochemistry in botany, specifically Nitrogen Metabolism,” Peter fills in. “I’d already heard them talk about it a couple of weeks previous, and they were preparing lecture notes the week before. They asked my opinion on the subject and how it would go over with high schoolers and I told them unless they were gonna talk about all the cool tech or space and aliens then there was nothing that would hold their attention.”

“Such kind words,” Bruce deadpanned.

“I know right!” Peter grinned cheerily, though his words were sarcastic.

“I have never met two people so alike and yet so different.”

“I know, it’s my dashing, handsome good looks,” Tony sighs and looks at Peter with sad eyes. “He’ll just never be as attractive as me with his baby face with makes everybody wanna squeeze his little cheeks,” he says, reaching out to do just as he said without turning away from Bruce, who blinks. And blinks again. “Though you can’t deny the solid abs and form, which will ultimately win anybody over in the end I think. What do you think Petey?” he asks, turning to face him now and not being put off by Peter’s disgruntled (puppy-like) face as he pinches again before pulling his hand back.

“I think I’m okay for now with not being Mr Casanova,” he answers, sitting on a stool with a sigh and resting his face in his hands.

“Ooh, something happened.”

“Leave it.”

“Oh how can I? I;m supposed to make fun of you on this.” He pauses. “Wait this isn’t the girl who’s dad you got arrested is it? I gotta tell you, chances of that actually working are like twelve percent buddy.”

“No it isn’t her. I don’t wanna talk about it right now.”

“Fair enough, but we will discuss it at some point.”

“Yeah, sure.”

* * *

“Hey Pepper,” Peter greets as she walks into the penthouse.

“Good evening Peter, have you seen Tony?” she asks, but she shakes his head.

“Not since I left the Compound, he had Happy bring me back after training, why?”

“Because he’s being an imbecile!”

“When is he not though?” Peter questions rhetorically.

“While you have a point there,” she concedes without irony. “I really do need to have a talk with him in person, since he keeps avoiding my calls at the moment.”

“Is it something I can help with convincing him of?”

“Can you convince him to put his foot down with the Accords council?”

“Probably not, but I could give it a try. What are you wanting them to do?”

“Not allow the Rogues to stay there any more! Honestly they have no respect for their environment or the ones funding any of it,” she huffs angrily. “Even worse, with Maximoff gone they seem to be making it out to be Tony’s fault and taking it out on him.” Yes, Peter had noticed that.

“Don’t the pair of you own the property? So can’t you just, like, kick them out?” Peter questions, and she huffs again.

“I wish, but no. The entire program is funded by the council to an extent now, so they’re under Accords rules to live there, and Tony’s under the council’s rules to obey them. He obviously owns more stock than me in the company, naturally, but it means little compared to his lot so it’s basically nothing in their eyes.”

“That sucks,” Peter commented, not knowing what else to say as Pepper settles at the island in the kitchen.

He gets out red peppers and some philadelphia cream cheese, setting the cheese aside for the moment as he takes the peppers and cuts them so they’re basically sticks, and then finds a small dish and dollops the cheese into it, setting it all onto a plate and putting it between them as he takes the seat next to her.

“You know, I’m sure that the first chance dad gets, he’ll kick them out,” he assures her, practically whispering in the large silence otherwise filling the penthouse. She smiles softly.

“I’m glad you feel okay to call him that in front of me now,” Pepper tells him, changing the subject.

“Yeah, well, I didn’t want you to be mad at him or anything for allowing it.”

“You’re good for him, Pete, and he’s good for you in more than just being a mentor and father-figure,” she explains gently.

“Thank you,” he tells her sincerely.

* * *

_“Peter, we’re going to have a visitor this weekend if that’s okay with you?”_ Tony asks over the phone the next Wednesday night.

“Sure, who is it?” Peter asks.

_“You may not remember because it was a couple of years ago, but you remember those terror attacks by the Mandarin?”_

“Where you gave out your home address on national television on multiple networks?” he asks dryly. “No, why would I not remember that?”

 _“Yeah yeah, whatever, anyway, I ended up meeting a kid there who basically fed me and showed me around for a couple of days, name’s Harley, he’s a good kid, kinda reminds me of you, except he has much more enthusiasm about cars,_ ” Tony adds the last part as a mutter.

“Just because I don’t understand everything about cars doesn’t mean I’m not enthusiastic about them,” Peter points out.

 _“Whatever, like I said anyway, I met him and told him he could come down any time he wanted as long as he called first - and somebody knew where he was going - and, well, he’s coming down. He’s a year older than you, but I have no doubt you can easily keep up._ ”

“Yeah, that’s fine, don’t worry about it. Is he allowed to know about…?” he trails off.

_“Sure, why not? He’s not gonna tell anybody.”_

Peter trusts his dad’s judgement well enough, he supposes, but he still hasn’t told Michelle and they’ve been kinda-friends-kinda-something-else for a few months now. Not that it’s going anywhere of course, but that’s honestly beside the point at the moment.

* * *

“Hey, so, I think I’ll leave a little early this week to go to Dad’s?” Peter says to Aunt May, almost like a question even though he’s not actually asking, just letting her know.

She seems to falter for a second in what she’s doing, which is only watching TV, but still, he can see it, even if he isn’t sure what’s caused it.

“Sure sweetie, any particular reason?”

“Somebody’s coming up to visit, said he met him when there was that whole Mandarin stuff going on a couple of years back,” he explains. “He thinks that we’ll get along well.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, he’s a year or so older than me apparently, but it’s cool and I’ll be able to keep up. If not then it doesn’t matter and I can go do my own thing or whatever.”

* * *

Peter _planned_ to go to the tower straight after school, but there was a bank robbery gone wrong to the point where people were now seriously in danger - not that they weren’t before it went wrong, but now it’s of more urgency that he gets there.

Honestly, after he saves people there, he’s too tired to go back and change entirely, so just grabs his backpack and webs his way to the tower.

It’s been a long day, okay? Two tests and a surprise quiz in Spanish? No thank you, is all he can think to say.

So, instead, he crawls through an open window of the penthouse in the living room and dumps his bag down, groaning and stretching, making small pleased noises when there’s a satisfying crack.

He sighs happily before tugging off his mask and finally looking around.

There’s a guy, sixteen, maybe seventeen, with straight light brown hair with longer on top with a fringe that flopped into his eyes and just a few inches taller than Peter himself staring at him.

There’s an awkward silence and then Peter speaks, “Hi,” he grins forcibly and it’s obvious and simply more than awkward. “You must be Harley, right?”

“Uh...yeah, and you’re Spider-Man,” he says needlessly.

Peter huffs. “My name’s Peter, Peter Parker,” he introduces and walks forward holding his hand out to shake, which Harley does so hesitantly.

“Harley Keener,” he returns, and Peter simply smiles at him.

Another moment’s pause before Peter’s grin becomes excited. “You hungry?”

“N-not really,” Harley stutters out.

“You sure?” Peter frowns. “I was going to have Friday some food - I’m _starved_ and haven’t eaten since lunch aside from a small energy drink between my last class and getting to the scene - so I was going to ask what you want. I mean, it’s not like I couldn’t eat anything left you know?” He turns to the kitchen and gets a glass of water. “Friday, can you order my usual from that pizza place?”

“Of course Peter,” Friday’s voice returns, amused slightly he’s sure.

“Are you sure you don’t want anything Harley? Dad really won’t mind, I’m like a black hole when it comes to food.”

“Uh, sure, go ahead then, what is there?” Peter lists off the main qualities that the pizza place has with regards to food and lets Harley order for himself.

“So, where is dad anyway?”

“He had to step out for a phone call,” he tells Peter with a shrug.

“Alright, that’s fairly normal,” Peter agrees with a nod. “So…” he says, when they’re left with silence again. “Want me to show you the lab?” Harley’s eyes widen.

“Are you-”

“Stop asking if I’m sure of things. Yes I’m sure. Even if I - _we_ \- weren’t allowed in the personal labs, there’s plenty of others we’d be allowed in, right Friday?” he asks her, standing up as he does.

“Of course Peter. May I suggest changing your clothes first?”

“Right, yeah, obviously,” he mutters to himself, then sticks his tongue out at the most obvious camera in the room. “Give me a couple of minutes to change and then we’ll go down.” Harley nods and Peter walks off, grabbing his bag. “Come on, my floor’s down a level,” he motions with his head and doesn’t check to see if Harley follows him to the elevator.

They get out a floor down and Peter leads him in, throwing his bag carelessly on the couch before going to his room, coming out a minute later with sweatpants and a t-shirt on, jacket in hand, before leading Harley back to the elevator and going down to the lab level.

“Hey Butters,” he greets as soon as he’s off and doesn’t see either of the other two.

“You’re sure we can be down here?” Peter almost groans at his questions, but he knows what he was like just a few months ago, before Tony was _dad_ , and he felt comfortable around everybody here to do as he pleased whenever he pleased.

“Friday?”

“Boss confirms that you both can be here without question,” she tells them, and Peter made a _See!_ movement with his arm.

“She’s dad’s AI, sure she disobeys him _sometimes_ but never when it comes to the lab or his personal safety. Unless not disobeying him would put him in more trouble,” Peter explains.

“Why do you…”

“Call him dad?” Harley nods. “Simple, he let me. I came on a school trip to the tower once when I was already pretty close with him and I’d already subconsciously started seeing him as a father-figure. In front of my whole class I almost called him dad. He brought me down here and we had a short conversation with him saying I could call him dad.” Peter then shrugs, waiting a second before walking over to a screen to bring up schematics for his latest web shooters, as well as the prototype he’s working on. Food arrives twenty minutes later, so they eat while they work and talk, and Peter shows him how to use some of the more recent technology which Tony hadn't yet sent him - something he'd been doing since that first time.

* * *

“So, boys,” Tony says when he finally comes down from whatever call he was making. “I’ve spoken to your guardians recently, more Harley’s mother than May but she called me the other day and gave me all the permission I needed and, if you want, since you don’t have to agree, I gained permission to legally adopt you both so the pair of you can inherit SI in a decade or so,” he explains. Neither of the pair says anything, too stunned. “Sometime this decade would be a good time to answer,” he prompted, and Peter can tell he’s nervous, even if he doesn’t want to show it obviously.

“I’d still get to see and stay with May whenever I want?” Peter checks, and Tony gives him a look as though he might have gone insane.

“Kid, even if I tried to stop you, you both would find a way around it somehow. Of course you can still see her,” Tony told him obviously. It probably was kinda obvious. They lived in the same city, he couldn’t exactly stop them seeing one another even if they only bumped into each other by accident. “We can keep up the current situation okay? You come here on weekends and stay the night when it’s far too late or you’re too tired to go back and then see Aunt May whenever you want kiddo. Plus, you’re going to college in two years anyway so you’ll be moving away from _both_ of us then. And we’re going to cry and eat ice cream and reminisce about when you were tiny and in diapers.” Peter moved forward and wrapped his arms around Tony’s chest.

“You weren’t there when I was in diapers and technically neither was May for any extended amount of time that wasn’t the odd babysit,” Peter chuckled.

“Fine, she can tell me about all your pre-pubescent struggles and I’ll laugh at you over those? Then we’ll start crying again because you’d be all grown up and away from us. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect,” Peter admitted with a shrug and a shy smile as he looked down at the floor once he stepped back.

“Harley?” Tony asks, turning towards him. He’s biting his lip and looking down.

“Can- can I think about it?”

“Sure, yeah, get Friday to call your mom if you wanna discuss it with her. Like I said to Peter, you’d still be living as you were before, except now you’d also be my kid. With my name if you both wanted it.” Harley nods before looking towards the door and then back, then dashing through it as fast as his legs can carry him it seemed.

“Alright,” Harley agreed two hours later when he came back down. Peter and Tony had their heads bent over some plans that Tony had drawn - by hand - when extremely sleep deprived, after about seventy hours no sleep, the last thing he did before passing out for a day apparently. Peter the one copying them down mostly while Tony was trying to figure out _what_ he actually wrote. “I’ll agree to be adopted by you,” he expanded when Tony glanced up with a confused look. And there was a light in the genius’ eyes that told you he was extremely happy with the decision even if it weren’t obvious by his smile. Then Harley came over to try and help out with what they were doing.

Another few hours later Pepper came down to tell them that she’d ordered food, even if she knew Harley and Peter had eaten, Peter could eat again - like an empty pit, his stomach was - and Harley wasn’t that hungry but could eat something. Tony hadn’t eaten anything all day since about eight in the morning so he could probably stuff a lot more in than if he had some sort of eating schedule.

“Coming, mother,” Peter told her sarcastically when she was at the lab doors, waving his hand as he did a mock bow.

“Don’t snark your mom, she could get you back so much worse and you know it,” Tony warned, pointing a finger before following after, pressing a chaste kiss to Pepper’s cheek.

* * *

***

“I get visitation rights,” May told him as soon as she had him on the phone.

_“May? What are you-”_

“You’re adopting him. He’s started calling you dad and he loves you as a father and I know you think of him as your son and you have a very nice and special bond, which is all well and good, but _I get visitation_.”

_“Okay, first off, kudos to you for figuring it out before I even brought it up with either of you. Secondly, it’s up to him where he stays but we’ll probably just stay with the same type of schedule we have now. Thirdly, I wouldn’t ever consider making you give up on seeing Peter. Finally, thank you for approving. I was going to ask after this weekend but it apparently seems I have a few calls to make.”_

“Protect my nephew, Tony Stark, or the last thing you see will be me plunging a knife through your heart.” She only stayed on the line long enough to hear his gulp before hanging up, feeling pleased with herself if with a slightly sad smile. This would be good, for all of them. Peter and Tony especially.          

**Author's Note:**

> Red peppers were kinda a play on Pepper's name and the fact she had red hair, something I didn't actually notice until after I'd written it, but like, I was just thinking which peppers go best with philadelphia tbh and it's red. Yellow is a close second but red is definitely my favourite. ANYWAY I hope you enjoyed this fic, please kudos and comment it, also if you have any suggestions for pieces I could write to go in the series then I'm all for it but be warned I have like 7 other pieces I want to write as well. Including a direct sequel to this! It can't be hidden forever that Tony's adopted two teenagers now can it??? Anywho, I think that's just about everything, see ya on the flipside ((i have no idea what that was, I apologize, but also I never know how to end these notes so you'll suffer my awkwardness of that ending with me))
> 
> ps: Harley Keener and his age/looks I just based it on the actor bc I couldn't find a specific age. I got it that the actor was born 2001, while Peter was fifteen when Homecoming came out, making him born 2002, making Harley a year older in this case.
> 
> pps: my tumblr is @sweetassaliens if you wanna check that out, it's mostly text posts and pretty pictures but you might like it ;)


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